Yuki Nomura went 3-for-4 with two home runs and six RBIs as the Nippon Ham Fighters completed a season-opening three-game sweep of the Seibu Lions with a 7-5 win Sunday.
The Pacific League club had its first 3-0 start to a season since 1962 when it was called the Toei Flyers. Seibu’s 0-3 start is the first time in six years.
Nomura hit a run-scoring double in the first inning, a three-run homer in the third and a two-run blast in the fifth, helping the team build a 6-2 lead midway through the game at Belluna Dome in Saitama Prefecture.
Franmil Reyes also had three hits while scoring three times for the Hokkaido-based Fighters.
Former Detroit Tigers and St. Louis Cardinals right-hander Drew VerHagen (1-0) rebounded from a shaky first inning to go five innings for the win. Kona Takahashi (0-1) gave up six runs in five innings.
Among Sunday’s other games, the Lotte Marines erased an early four-run deficit to beat the defending Pacific League champion SoftBank Hawks 7-4. The DeNA BayStars held on for a 2-1 win over the Chunichi Dragons in the Central League.
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